Scout Profiles on MySpace and Facebook

[Liz]

"That's just the page they WANT you to see."

 

That's a very good point! In my case, of course this is not the only online monitoring I do of the kids. I'm lucky in that I've been a tech professional since they were toddlers and I'm a lot more web-savvy than they are. Not many parents can say that, and unfortunately not enough parents care. I would think that the majority of the parents who have their kids in Scouting *would* care, but not necessarily all of them.

 

"Bottom line, if your grandmother (or SM) wouldn't approve, don't post it! "

 

This is the message I give my kids as well, along with some guidance along the lines of "Grandma wouldn't approve of this (and neither do I), and this is why... so take it down." I haven't seen any evidence of my kids behaving badly, but sometimes the statements, or "pieces of flair" or similar things that they put in their profile have connotations they weren't aware of, and they need a little advice. Those situations are becoming less frequent as they get older and "get" more of the jokes they didn't used to understand...

 

-Liz

[SR540Beaver]

I'm a facebook user with 110 friends. 25 of those friends are scouts and 25 are scouters. A few others are scout related like spouses of scouters. Heck, some of the scouters is our DE, one of our camp directors, one of our camp rangers, the council program director and packaddle and Scouter Terry from here. Those of you who indicated you are facebook'ers will be getting a PM from me. Some of the kids I include as scouts are actually aged out now. I find that they are the ones who have begun to use more colorful langauge, but it is the more "socially accepted" words and not vulgarities. Being friends with them on facebook does give you a better glimpse into their life.

 

Myspace is somewhere I don't go very often. My son goes there on occasion, but not frequently. He was allowed to set a profile up a few years ago as long as I had the password. More than one of his school friends (not scouts) liked to use some pretty vulgar language in cooments they would post. I checked almost daily and when I saw them, I zapped them or made him zap them. He got really good at policing his page. I have a nephew whose page I found and it was flat disgusting. But then, his mom is half cracked and has let her little angel express himself however he desired since he was a toddler. Bringing it to her attention would have met with a response of "so".

 

My suggestion is like the others here. If it is your kid, supervise their online activity and handle it. If it is someone else's kid and you know their parent well enough to approach them about it, do so. If it is one of your scouts, a discussion with them is in order.

[Gunny2862]

OGE said"it may do well to let the youth know that informatoin on the web is really out there, for anyone to see and many people do see it"

 

I have been mentioning this concept to my son before he ever joined Scouting, and to his friends.

It's not good enough to simply monitor or remove it as there are sites that you can "go back in time" and see what has been posted there before. If you have Scouts that want to attend U.S. Service Academies or have sensitive or high profile jobs those archives may very well be searched and impact their attendance, hiring or career potential.

[GKlose]

I just brought up a Facebook profile a few weeks ago, and it's been amazing how many old and lost friends I've connected with since then. Friends that weren't easily connected to via LinkedIn or MySpace.

 

I haven't run into any of the problems that some of you have run into yet, but then again, my kids aren't on (I think they're too young) and the only nieces and nephews I've connected with are the ones that requested it. It took me a few days to figure this out, but there is a certain "creepy factor" that has to be worked around with older folks on Facebook.

 

I'm finding the "fan page" aspect to be rather interesting. Found a whole group of people connected via a fan page (we all agree that "fan" doesn't really suit in this circumstance) related to a rather large tornado that destroyed my home town when I was a kid. Facebook is a really expedient way to share pictures and stories.

 

Guy

[mmhardy]

My view of the Social Networking Sites is totally different.

 

First, porn and scandal are the first order of business for any new technology. After that its all business. We are still in the first wave of these social web sites like Facebook. . What troubles me is that societies rush to make an example out of these young folks nave explorations with a viral technology. The police are ready and willing to make lifetime felons out of teenagers messing around with a cell phone camera and a network. (See Newsweeks Feb 23 issue p 18). Whats even more shocking is that girls are more likely to be caught up by sending provocative images and texts.

 

Bottom Line tell your boys 1) do not send or forward anything via text or video that your mother would object to seeing. 2) If you receive something that your think your mom would object then immediately delete it.

 

[BadenP]

I understand where many of you are coming from it just seemed to me that vcrew66 was being sort of a voyeur. What is his relationship to these scouts, he never said he was their leader or friend of the family? Just a warning sign as a former federal investigator his behavior of targeting certain boys on the internet mirrors the actions of pedophiles I have dealt with in the past. You have to question his motives as well as the boys actions.

[Superscouter]

I think this topic more properly belongs in the issues and politics forum. Discipling of children belongs to the parents, and only when they fail and it involves serious violations of the law should society step in.

[CalicoPenn]

Might a suggest an additional way to approach this? For many of us, we think reminding the Scouts of the Scout Law and the Scout Oath is some kind of magic bullet that will get the lads to rethink the error or their ways, then are disappointed when it doesn't work. If these lads are going to drinking parties, and posting statements supporting teen drinking and drug use, they're likley over the age of 16 and threats over BOR's no longer really mean anything to them (that you haven't already lost them as Scouts suggests to me that it is something they do to please their parents rather than themselves). Nevertheless, you still have them involved and can make a difference - but the carrot and stick you're using needs to be updated.

 

Rather than talk with them about how their facebook pages violate the Scout Law, talk to them about how facebook pages are affecting people's futures - instead of being judgemental, come at it from a sense of being concerned that they haven't thought of possible ramifications.

 

Sit down with them - heck, make it a Scoutmaster's minute (or 10 - use it as part of the BSA mandate to incorporate internet safety in the program) and talk about how certain kinds of posting on social network pages are affecting peoples lives. You can start out with reminders that facebook (etc.) pages are public and that many college admission departments are checking high schooler's pages and using them to help determine if they are going to be a good fit for their schools. It should resonate particularly with the older lads who may be starting to apply to colleges - let them know that the college of their choice may see their facebook page and immediately disqualify them.

 

Talk about career plans - many employers are now looking at peoples facebook pages, and turning down qualified applicants because of what they find on the internet.

 

Then finish up with Michael Phelps, whose tale is not about his own facebook page, but about a picture that was snapped at a party ending up on someone elses facebook page which caused him to lose respectibility, sponsors, and money. That's more of a cautionary tale about being careful with their behavior out and about - what they think is a private affair can become public really fast.

 

 

 

[shortridge]

The Phelps photo was actually published in a British tabloid first. But the points here are all very good.

 

I'm on Facebook, but am very careful about it. I only "friend" folks whom I know and have worked with in the past... no friend-of-a-friend or Internet-friend stuff. I know that what other people post can be a reflection on me.

 

A good chunk of my Facebook friends are people I used to work with at summer camp. It's been great to catch up with folks I haven't seen in a decade.

[KurtB]

Facebook has been a good way for me to catch up on a lot of High School and even a few College friends that I had not seen/heard from in many years. That said, I try to limit my friends to those that I was actually friends with (physically or virtually). I have gotten a lot of requests from people that I knew in high school (but in name only). Would I accept a request from one of the scouts in my sons Troop? Sure. Would I initiate it? I don't think so, though I have never really thought about it.

 

For a lot of kids, Facebook is nothing more than a giant popularity contest, and being "over the top" is just one way to get more "friends".

 

Kurt

[SR540Beaver]

I think many folks don't understand facebook. Can it be abused? Sure, anything in life can be. If you are unfamilar with it and don't want to open an account to see what it is all about, have a friend who is on facebook show you. There are security settings where anyone can view your profile all the way down to only people you allow being able to see it. Unlike zanga and myspace, I've not seen a single dirty picture or any vulgarity on facebook. It is a way for friends to stay connected. My friends on facebook are scouts, scouters, family, old school friends, old church friends, coworkers and friends of my son. Out of 120+ friends, there are probably 4 or 5 that I talk with on a consistent basis. I set up a "group" for the church I went to from birth to 30 years of age. The church closed a couple of years ago, was torn down and is now a used car lot. While I left the church 20 years ago, I am now reconnecting with many of my old friends from there that are scattered in churches all over the city.

 

Again, you can only see or be seen by being allowed by a friend. Anyone who has you as a friend can see who all of your friends are and any postings you post. It is a safer place than some of the other places like myspace. That being said, a parent should always monitor their children's activity online.

[ccjj]

Several of the Scouts in troop have either Facebook and/or Myspace profiles. I also am on both sites. I have connected with people I used to work with at church camp in the 80's, and most importantly, my oldest brother who I hadn't heard from in 17 years.

Our SM has had a SM minute about the internet. He used it to talk about what is posted online, and how it can be used against people. It made some of the boys stop and think. I think that 5-6 boys of our 11 boy troop have profiles. The SM did say that actions outside of the troop can have an effect on how perceive Scouts, so be sure to think about what you post.

 

ccjj

 

[Trevorum]

An Eagle from our troop, now away at college, just today sent me a FB private message requesting a letter of recommendation. The request is not unusual of course, but he sent it through FaceBook, where I can fully see his life, his friends, his conversations. I find that extraordinarily interesting, and relevant to the current discussion thread. I've followed his crazy college antics on FB somewhat - which are just crazy college antics and nothing he'd be embarrassed to show his mom. I'm very proud of this young man and I am honored that he trusts me enough to request a recommendation through FB.

 

[Cubmaster Mike]

I am on Facebook. I am also in my neighborhood, my home, my church and elsewhere. I never know when I am going to run into a Scouting family or other group- I also serve as President of the Swim Team and am active on Church committees and have been a school PFC president. My actions in public are always on display.

 

Am I a saint? Heck no, I have TWO closets full of skeletons. But a number of years ago as my involvement increased in outside groups, I noticed that my actions were observed by others whether I liked it or not. If I did something that hurt the reputation of one my groups, I would expect them to take action against me (censure, warnings, suspension, etc).

 

I dont live my own world, I share it with others. If I want to go out and kick up my heels and howl at the moon, I have a duck club where I can do that. In the world I share with others, I act as I would have others act.

 

Citizenship is part of being a Scout. What you say on the internet is no different than writing it on paper and posting it on a bulletin board in a public place. Come to think of it, its the same as wearing it taped to the front of your shirt.

 

Now we all make mistakes and youth is about making errors and learning from your errors. If I saw driving actions or facebook pages like was described here, I would talk to the youth, remind them about their oath and law and talk about other appropriate, more private outlets for their exuberance. I would give them the opportunity to correct their ways.

 

And if they disagreed, then you bet I would be at their BOR and recommending that they be delayed advancement until they can act like a Scout.

 

CMM

[shortridge]

What you say on the internet is no different than writing it on paper and posting it on a bulletin board in a public place. Come to think of it, its the same as wearing it taped to the front of your shirt."

 

Actually, I'd say it's more like wearing it taped to the front of your shirt, handing extra copies out to random people on the street, plastering it on a billboard on a busy highway and sending a bound copy to the Library of Congress for archiving.